


An Engineering Tale

by allthetrek



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-19
Updated: 2019-04-19
Packaged: 2020-01-16 07:20:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18516610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allthetrek/pseuds/allthetrek
Summary: Captain Pike realizes he’s falling for you, his Chief Engineer.





	An Engineering Tale

Captain Pike was having the worst day. Well, every day lately had been one hectic, harrowing, life-or-death scenario after another. Everyone was on edge, and the Captain especially felt the weight of not only his crew, but that of the universe, on his shoulders. Luckily, his shoulders were almost impossibly broad. Nevertheless, he was damn near his breaking point.

Finally, things stopped falling apart for a moment, and the Captain decided he needed a change of scenery than the flashing red alerts of the bridge. The ship was cruising along at impulse; warp drive offline while upgrades were being completed. Captain Pike boarded the turbolift, then walked the ship’s corridors on his rounds, checking into the major areas as he went.

He chatted briefly with some of the crew as he encountered them. He stopped in sick bay, checking in with the medical team and with the couple of crewmembers who were recovering there from plasma burns. Upgrades in engineering had reportedly went awry. That would be his next stop. Those modifications to the plasma injectors should have been completed hours ago, but still no report on the new specs.

“Captain, don’t forget, you’re due for your physical!” the doctor lectured, and Pike sighed and nodded his head as he turned to leave sick bay. “Thank you, doctor. It’s on my list!”. A never-ending list of shifting priorities, he thought. Hey, this is what he’d signed up for, worked years to achieve; a command position, his own starship. And he thrived in this environment.

However, as he trekked down the ship’s corridors to engineering, he felt a weight looming over him, a dark cloud he felt was following him with each step. The engineering bay doors hissed open; sturdy metal doors that could withstand anything but a core breach. Once inside, he took in the impressive space. The beauty of this ship never ceased to amaze him, and engineering was no exception. Nothing quite compared to the purposeful bustle of the engineering crew, each one brilliant in their field. The acoustics: a soothing hum of perfectly attenuated warp coils. A spectrum of lighting: the white bay lights, blue plasma glow, red and green status LEDs on the control panels. It was a veritable feast for the senses.

Speaking of feasts for the senses. “Captain!” you exclaimed, surprised by his impromptu visit. You snapped to attention, leaving your current project and hurrying over to greet your captain. You approached him, smiling pleasantly in greeting, and he returned your gesture, smiling his dimpled grin to you, and your breath hitched. The man’s smile drove you crazy… Stop! He’s your captain! And he needs a status report, stat!

“Captain, I know we’re behind on those upgrades. We ran into some problems with the, uh… Well we don’t know what went wrong yet, exactly, but we’re getting to the bottom of it right now!” you stammered, the Captain glaring you down with a hint of amusement in his eyes. His tritanium blue eyes bore into you, and you felt yourself getting flustered, unsure if it was from the heat of the engine bay or the presence of Captain Pike. Probably the latter, since the same thing happened no matter where you encountered him…

“I need this thing back online yesterday, Commander,” the Captain stated as he walked curiously around your work area, injector components and tools strewn about. If you’d known he was coming, you might have been more orderly in your work, but there was no time for that today. You were the Chief Engineer, and when crunch time came you always found your stride. You’d been working tirelessly these past few hours, with the support of your team, and you just needed to make a few final adjustments and the system would be ready to reinitialize.

“Ready to start ‘er up right away, Captain! Just a few minutes, we’ll be ready!” you stated, your confident tone masking what you felt on the inside. You had confidence in your work, but with the Captain here, watching you, your insides writhed with self-consciousness.

“I’d like to be here when you bring things online. Proceed, Commander,” Pike stated, the glint of mischief in his eyes still present. Did he know the effect he had on you?

You bent down and picked up the necessary components, installing them with your usual precision as the Captain lingered near you. You could feel his eyes on you, and indeed they were. You’d been working for hours in the hot bay, and your face shone with exertion, a few stray strands of hair plastered to your dewy skin. Your hair was out of place, and you’d opened your collar and partially unzipped your uniform jacket to cool off a bit. You thought you must look a mess to the Captain. In his mind, though, he couldn’t take his eyes off of you. Seeing you in your element, your skill with warp mechanics, your hard work and dedication, it really resonated with him.

He realized he was staring at you, and he consciously pulled himself away, checking in with the rest of the engineering crew as you finished your installations in unison with the others. It was a team effort, and you’d never take all of the credit. You were part of a great crew, under and even greater Captain. You had no complaints, and no doubt that whatever came this ship’s way, the Captain would lead you all with valor. You admired him, though lately, it was more than that…

Installations were complete; it was time to test out the new system. Third time’s the charm! You walked around the engines, closing your eyes and running your fingers lightly over the warp field coil casings as you walked. You had quite the relationship with these things. You’d rebuilt them how many times now, after multiple catastrophic failures due to whatever situation was going on outside. You’d kept them just alive when the crew was depending on the engines to escape dire straits.

Your hands lingered over the subspace field modulator, and you telepathically implored the engine to work this time. Please! For you, so you didn’t look ridiculous in front of the Captain? Please work this time!

“Commander…?” the deep voice of Captain Pike reverberated through your auditory system and you opened your eyes and looked at him. His eyes danced questioningly between yours and your hands, which still hovered over the field modulator.

“Oh, ah, positive energy! You know?” you smiled half-jokingly at the Captain, pulling your hands away. You reached one hand out to Captain Pike, tapping him lightly on the arm, “Want some? Zzt!” you teased him, giggling as you turned and walked over to the control panel.

Captain Pike was surprised by your teasing, but pleasantly so, a smirk donning his lips, and he felt his mood change thoroughly, as though your positivity was indeed contagious. Your smile certainly was, and subconsciously his brain took note of each time he was around you, and how you made him feel so at ease, no matter what was going on around you.

He followed you over to your station, and watched as you expertly entered commands into the system, your hands almost a blur as you brought the system online. “Moment of truth!” you exclaimed, and everyone in engineering waited with bated breath as the plasma surged through the conduits once more. Nothing overheated, exploded, or otherwise failed catastrophically. Success!

“Great work, Commander. All of you!” the Captain stated, beaming at you and the crew. Warp engines were once again online, and slightly more efficient now that the upgrades were in place.

Captain Pike left engineering feeling strangely calm, a stark contrast to how he’d been feeling earlier. His interactions with you had been almost cathartic, and he felt largely unburdened by his earlier worries. He made his way back to the bridge, checking in and directing that warp be resumed. He migrated to his ready room, and began reviewing status reports.

As his eyes scanned the latest crew efficiency stats, his mind wandered. Your image dominated his thoughts; bent over the warp access panel, your appearance was more than pleasing to the captain. He almost liked seeing you slightly dishevelled, and the way your uniform hugged your body in all the right places… Something began to stir in Captain Pike, something he’d not felt for ages.

But as much as your image infiltrated his thoughts, it was the way he felt around you that really stood out to him. The way you kept your cool even in dire situations; partially due to your Starfleet training and experience, but also your temperament. You were brilliant, beautiful, and your contagious optimism and was exactly what the Captain needed in his life.

His heart twinged a little as he thought of you, and he knew he was in trouble. He was falling for you, and there was nothing in space and time that could stop the two of you ending up together.


End file.
